I have, shall we say, a pretty good idea who is behind the unbelievable nonsense that insists that a man arriving in Australia to say that we must love each other no matter what our beliefs, race, politics or income bracket, has to pass a ‘Character Test’ or be banned from speaking to a public audience?

The document said that the Australian Government supports freedom of speech, but of course it doesn’t because it only supports the ‘freedom’ to speak within the bounds that it sets. This is not ‘freedom of speech’ at all, but only the ‘freedom’ to speak within the bounds dictated by the government. The document says:

‘Section 501 of the Migration Act 1958 (“the Act”) provides a discretionary power to refuse to grant, or to cancel, a visa if a non-citizen does not meet the requirements of the “Character Test”. A non-citizen will not meet the requirements of the Character Test if, among other things, there is a significant risk that they will vilify, incite discord in, or represent a danger to, the Australian community or a segment of the Australian community.’

When I arrived at the immigration desk at Melbourne Airport I was amazed at how quickly the lady stamped my passport without asking any questions. But the reason became clear as she handed my documents to a guy behind her and not to me.

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‘Could you please go with this man, sir’, are words I have heard many times, especially in Canada, and the immigration gentlemen was clearly waiting for me, not least because he knew my name without looking at the documents. He then led me to another lady who took me into a bright, white, Agent Smith-type room.

A d v e r t i s e m e n t

I must stress, however, that everyone was extremely pleasant and courteous and I have no problem with these people at all. They were just doing what they were told to do. I was handed the document below and asked to sign it if I was going to be allowed in the country. I did so because I have no intention of vilifying anyone in Australia and because my signature only related to confirming I had read the document, not that I agreed with it.

I said to the lady that I had come to Australia to say that if we are going sort out this crazy world we have to love each other irrespective of our differences. She seemed embarrassed and said she knew nothing of what I was saying.

The people with the biggest problem are those individuals, and the groups they represent, who are so full of their own sense of superiority – and so full of fear – that they feel the need to dictate what others can and cannot say.

Imagine living with that every day. Nightmare.

You will see by the way the document is worded that the ‘minister’ can basically decree who can and cannot come into the country by deciding what does and does not constitute the term ‘incite discord’. Does it not incite discord, for example, if someone exposes that the Australian government is corrupt. Yes, discord, called outrage, among the population who suffer as a result.

Under the terms of this document, the minister could prevent someone coming into the country to expose such corruption. What kind of free country is that?